Sinkhole patched, Curtis Road reopened

Saturday

Mar 1, 2014 at 11:00 AM

By Daily Telegram staff

Curtis Road has been reopened after a sinkhole opened under a section of pavement a week ago. The road was closed at that point on Feb. 19.

Adrian city workers failed to find any water main breaks in the area, the initial suspected cause of the sinkhole. A resident also reported her front lawn had been sinking for several days before the hole developed in the pavement.

Several older residents in the area said an artesian well once existed at that location, said Jason Schnaidt, Lenawee County Road Commission operations manager. The artesian well theory was confirmed when city workers helped pump out water that filled the hole in the road, said Schnaidt.

“You could see the water coming in from the ground,” he said.

Road commission workers filled the hole with riprap and crushed limestone as a temporary fix so the road could be re-opened Thursday.

Schnaidt said a drain tile is needed to carry the water away from the road bed so a permanent patch can be made in the asphalt. The drainage work will have to wait until frozen ground thaws this spring, he said.